1
Retired palaeontologist Richard Fortey meanders into and out of deep time, chasing the species that have evaded extinction, and drawing on a career’s worth of fascinating anecdotes.
2
In this impeccably researched book Richard Panek explores why we still don’t know the nature of dark matter and dark energy, even though they make up 96 per cent of the universe.
3
The Fundamental Fysiks Group was an entourage of freewheeling physicists in Berkeley, California, who pushed the boundaries of “experimental” science in the 1970s.
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4
A superb comic book that tells the story of evolution on Earth from the perspective of aliens from the planet Glargal.
5
This insider’s guide unveils – and explains -the hard and complicated work being done at the frontier of particle physics. The effect is like being taken behind the curtain in Oz and given a full tour by the wizard.
6
Astronomer Bob Berman is a masterful storyteller who spins the tale of our favourite star with a deft touch and leaves you desperate to see the Northern Lights for yourself.
7
Theoretical physicist Brian Greene makes abstract ideas about the multiverse both engaging and implausibly comprehensible.
8
A complex tale, 1493 makes for compulsive reading because it illustrates the paradoxical nature of the ecological effects linking the world.
9
Gorgeous batik illustrations inspired by satellite and aerial photographs turn global catastrophes into works of art in this book on climate change basics.
10
This gorgeously illustrated book tours chronologically through the major moments in the history of physics from the big bang to the “big rip” – a possible scenario for the end of the universe.
11
Psychologist Richard Wiseman demonstrates with wit and humour why so-called supernatural events are far less extraordinary than the complex inner workings of our brains.
12
Part scary exposition of how we’ve screwed things up, and part optimistic take on how we can undo that harm, this is a wonderful exploration of the intricate superorganism that is humankind.
13
Everything you ever wanted to know about the science of flying – from the terrible taste of tepid in-flight tea to how we manage to defy gravity in a pressurised aluminium cylinder.
14
This six-volume collection combines elegant design, informative cartoons and excellent explanation of science and mathematics.
Harper Press
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
W.W. Norton
illustrated by Kevin Cannon and Zander Cannon
Bodley Head/Ecco Press
Little, Brown & Co
Allen Lane/Alfred A. Knopf
Knopf/Granta
Global Climate Change: A primer
illustrations by Mary Edna Fraser, Duke University Press
The Physics Book
Sterling
Paranormality
Macmillan
Allen Lane/Atlantic Monthly Press
Icon Books
Sciencia
Walker & Company